1. Drain juice from clams into a large skillet over the onions, celery, potatoes and carrots. Add water to cover, and cook over medium heat until tender. 2. Meanwhile, in a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Whisk in cream and stir constantly until thick and smooth. Stir in vegetables and clam juice. Heat through, but do not boil. 3. Stir in clams just before serving. If they cook too much they get tough. When clams are heated through, stir in vinegar, and season with salt and pepper.

I just bought some clams, planning to make some clam chowder! My mom always made it with canned milk, potatoes, onions, and corn, and probably some butter, but I'm going to try it with chicken broth, the way some of the restaurants do it. I'll leave out the carrots, but I'll use celery. I don't see much point in the vinegar. Does it add a flavor, or does it interact with something?

Vinegar or citric acids can add a nice subtle "brightness" to a soup that helps to enhance the other flavors. The concept is vaguely similar to salt in a cake recipe that's there to provide a slight contrast to the sweet.

The world of vinegars is vast, interesting, and can be quite expensive. Some aged balsamics can go for a couple hundred bucks. Decent enough (and inexpensive) wine vinegars can be had at most supermarkets. Rice wine vinegar is a nice all purpose one for dressings or recipes. It's milder than most vinegars and has a little sweetness to it.

My favorite potato salad is made with a dash of cider vinegar and I LOVE the flavor it adds. One time, though, I thought I'd add more since I loved it so much but went a little overboard and it ended up kind of gross.

Why are you the way that you are? Honestly, every time I try to do something fun or exciting, you make it not that way. I hate so much about the things that you choose to be. Michael Scott

I made the clam chowder! It was fantastic--so fantastic that I had four servings and then had to lay on the couch for a while. (Yeah, I won't be posting in the Hot Bodies thread this week....). The leftovers were not quite as nummalicious--I think the chowder had congealed too much to be resurrected in the microwave? I don't know. The family liked it enough that they want me to experiment with making it with evaporated milk. Or, as my five-year-old put it, "Momma, we should keep the ingredients for this soup in our house ALL the time."